Father Patrick Mulhern

Family-Placed Death Notice

FATHER PATRICK F. MULHERN Father Patrick F. Mulhern died Wednesday, Nov. 29, 2006 at Piedmont Hospital. He was 67. Born in Coolaney, County Sligo, Ireland, on Sept. 10, 1939, Father Pat was a priest for 42 years, serving in the Archdiocese of Atlanta since 1969. He was the pastor of five parishes over a period of 25 years in the archdiocese, the longest assignment being at St. Thomas More Church, Decatur, where he was pastor for 12 years from 1987-99. Prior to that, he was the pastor of St. Pius X Church, Conyers, from 1983-87; of St. Mary's Church, Rome, from 1977-83; of St. John Vianney Church, Lithia Springs, from 1975-77; and of St. Bernadette Church, Cedartown, from 1973-75. Before his first pastorate, he was an assistant pastor at St. Thomas More and at the Cathedral of Christ the King, Atlanta, and administrator of St. Thomas Aquinas Church, Alpharetta. He was also priest-in-charge of a newly forming mission in the Buford area in 1975. At a Mass on June 3, 1989 celebrating Father Pat's 25th anniversary of ordination, a speaker noted that it was the part of the church liturgical known as Ordinary Time, which was just the way Father Pat liked it. "I'm a parish priest. I'm not anything else," he said in a 1989 anniversary interview. "It's my primary interest in life. I'm a work-a-day parish priest." At the same time, his foibles, like constantly losing his rectory and car keys and glasses, and his self-deprecating humor, were legendary. When his planned simple outdoor silver anniversary celebration led to a last-minute rush inside by all the people and all the props to avoid rain, he wrote in the parish bulletin: "They say that Gandhi's insistence on living a simple life caused endless trouble." When annual fund drives came along, his signature approach was to say something like "you good people know what needs to be done," and without mentioning it again somehow the goal was met. His homilies often focused upon the need to build the Christian community in the parish and to move from the celebration of the Eucharist to living the faith in community. One of seven children of the late John and Eileen Mulhern, Father Pat was ordained in Ireland for the Diocese of Natchez-Jackson, Mississippi on June 21, 1964. But he was virtually unique there as a priest from All Hallows College Seminary in Dublin. "I almost died of loneliness," he said. He moved to the Atlanta Archdiocese in 1969, where there was a group of Irish priests, including several from All Hallows. He said he immediately took to Atlanta, appreciating its bustle, vitality and climate. As pastor of St. Thomas More Church he initiated a parish assembly, drawing parishioners together to dream and brainstorm about the future of the parish community. The process led to the revival of a parish pastoral council and a master plan that included the building of a new parish hall in 1991, improved accessibility to the church, and major renovations to the parish school, which was named a national School of Excellence in 1988. Parish involvement in outreach to the poor in Decatur was also strengthened, and new parish social traditions were started, including the annual More Festival and SK run he initiated. The new hall was later formally named Mulhern Hall. These revitalizing and community-building efforts laid the groundwork for a 2002 major expansion and renovation of the church, the addition of a day chapel, and the building of a new school enrichment building and gymnasium completed by his successors. A lover of theater, in seminary he was often chosen as the lead actor in plays, including Shakespearean dramas, said Father John Kieran, also a graduate of All Hallows Seminary. He sang at one time in the St. Thomas More folk music group and for years was part of a Tuesday priest tennis foursome. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. Thomas More Church on Monday, Dec. 4, at 2:30 p.m. Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory will be the principal celebrant. Father Pat is survived by three sisters, Olive Anderson of Melbourne, Australia, Faye Austin of Oxford, England, Helen Cassidy of Dublin, Ireland; and by a brother, Philip Mulhern of Newton Abbot, England. Memorial contributions may be made to Catholic Relief Services African Famine Relief at Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090, Baltimore, MD 21203-7090. A. S. Turner & Sons